Not much separated No. 10 in this week’s 810 Varsity Top 25, St. James, and St. Pius X on Friday night. 

The Thunder trailed for most of the night, but found the plays when they needed them, escaping with the 27-21 win. 

"We kind of came out sleepwalking and they're (Pius) coached really well," Thunder head coach Tom Radke said. "We kept saying, they can't handle St. James football for four quarters. They took it to us in the first half, but we wanted to wear them out and we're able to do that in the end."  

The Pius plan was clear - pound the rock. The Warriors took the opening drive inside the St. James 5, all on run plays. 

But Pius coughed it up and the Thunder recovered the ball at 6:29 of the first, but one minute later, a Warrior interception set up the first score of the game.  Junior Cannon Cruse's six-yard rushing touchdown gave Pius a 7-0 lead. 

The Thunder kept it close with a 13-yard rushing score of their own from Jake House early in the second. 

Pius stuck with the plan and another one-yard touchdown on the ground by Cruse had the Warriors in front, 14-7, at the break. 
Radke said he challenged his team to respond in the second half and they did just that. 

The Thunder scoring drive to open the third quarter took 6:51. House punched it in and the game was tied, once again.  St. James blocked a Pius field goal late in the third to keep the game deadlocked, heading into the fourth. 

"We expect our guys to make plays all the time," Radke said. "Don't go out there thinking you're going to make a mistake. That's not how you play football at St. James. I'm really proud of our team and our coaching staff." 

On the first snap of the fourth, House scored his third touchdown from four yards out to give the Thunder their first lead of the night, 21-14. 

Pius (2-4) knotted things back up with 5:13 to play on a Dwight Medbery touchdown.

St. James had the final say with the fourth rushing score by House from four yards out with 1:52 left for a 27-21 margin. 

St. James (4-1) travels to Blue Valley North next week, while Pius plays at Bishop Miege.

Saint Thomas Aquinas used its tried-and-true formula of Cal Arndt all night, and topped its rival Bishop Miege, 43-14, on Friday night.
Ardnt, the Saints star senior running back, rushed for 288 yards on 35 carries, including three for touchdowns, as Aquinas won its third straight against the Stags (2-3). 

The Saints, No. 2 in the 810 Varsity Top 25, clung to a 15-7 lead early, but then Arndt went to work by capping a scoring drive with a four-yard score for a 22-7 halftime lead.
Arndt then broke loose to start off the third quarter for a 40-yard touchdown jaunt, and a 29-7 lead.

Miege, playing with its third-string quarterback in the contest, pulled within 29-14 after a Vinny George five-yard touchdown. But the Saints put the wraps on the game on a one-yard Arndt touchdown, and a 31-yard fumble return for a score by Alex McNamara

Aquinas will entertain Rockhurst next Friday night, while Miege plays host to St. Pius X.